The present invention relates to an improved harvesting machine which substantially increases the amount of crop gathered in the harvesting process. The term "blueberry" is used as a generic expression for all types of fruits, nuts, vegetables, and the like, which grow on bushes, trees and vines and which can be harvested mechanically by a machine passing over the crop bearing plant.
In the conventional blueberry harvesting machine, a frame is supported on ground contacting wheels which are driven by a motor so that the entire assembly is self-propelled. The frame for the harvesting machine is usually of an inverted "U" type having box-like sides extending substantially the full length of the machine. Within the U-shaped portion of the machine, and extending from each inwardly facing vertical side, are a plurality of movable arms which contact the bush bearing the blueberries to be harvested causing the blueberries to be dislodged from the branches of the bush without damaging the branches. The blueberries then drop onto a collection surface formed by a plurality of pivotally mounted overlapping catcher pans which extend inwardly from each side of the inverted U-shaped frame toward the longitudinal center line of the frame. The catcher pans are horizontally inclined so that any fruit which falls onto the pans will be directed toward the sides of the harvesting machine.
As the harvesting machine advances over a row of bushes, the bushes cause the pivotally mounted and spring biased catcher pans to be deflected backward forming an opening in the collector pans about the upwardly extending branches of the bush. The catcher pans form a substantially continuous collecting surface under the extending fruit bearing branches. The blueberries dislodged by the arms drop onto the catcher pans and slide or roll to the sides of the harvesting machine where they are gathered on endless conveyor belts. The blueberries are then carried to the rear of the machine into collecting containers. As can be seen from the description above, the machine is quite efficient gathering approximately seventy-five percent of the harvestable fruit growing on each bush being harvested. The remaining twenty-five percent of the fruit, however, is usually lost by falling directly downward through the bush onto the ground through the opening in the catcher pans. A mature blueberry bush can have a base as large as 18-20 inches in diameter which is formed by a plurality of branches which extend upwardly and outwardly from the ground. The catcher pans contact the bush near the bottom of the outwardly extending branches and leave a substantial opening in the center of the bush where blueberries can drop directly to the ground and be lost.